Review: Katakoi Triangle

Hi, Kaushik here to review another manga. This week it’s Katakoi Triangle, a cute little 2 volume shoujo about a love triangle… Though it becomes something of a square later on. It was written and illustrated by Amano Shinobu, who seems to do exclusively shoujo works. I actually read another one of her works, Last Game, but that one’s not finished yet. This manga was serialized in LaLa DX and LaLa Special in 2009, and was collected in 2 volumes not long afterwards. So without further ado, let’s get to it~!

Considering the manga is only 2 volumes, and is about as generic shoujo as one could get, the plot isn’t anything incredible. I’m used to it and even enjoy it since I’m a fan of shoujo, but I definitely would not recommend it to anyone who dislikes the genre. Essentially it’s a little love story involving misinterpretations as drama and general stupidity from characters whose mental health normal people would make inquiries about. At least, that’s how you’d think if you’d translate a story like this into real life. When I read shoujo, I try to put every situation in the context of the “shoujo bubble”, a certain suspension of disbelief I keep for all the generic tropes and idiocies of the shoujo genre. And surprisingly, that works for me. I really enjoy the stuff. It’s just a cute, lighthearted vanilla romance. Happy endings abound.

So the plot is as follows. The main character is a girl named Sekiya. She works in the library, and has a crush on a boy named Yuuki. Yuuki’s best friend (and pretty much the only person he cares about) is the popular boy Kasai. And Kasai has some mysterious feelings for Sekiya. In volume 2, a girl named Himemiya is introduced, and she has a crush on Kasai. So you can see what kind of situation this is. And considering that this is a shoujo manga… No one will end up resolving their feelings for each other normally. Everyone will be poked and prodded into certain situation as they realize and eventually act on their feelings. That’s the plot. Just 3 (and eventually 4) people working through, understanding, and eventually acting upon their feelings for each other.

From left to right, Yuuki, Himemiya, Sekiya, and Kasai.

The main character is a girl named Sekiya, who has been watching her crush Yuuki from afar for a long while. One day she decides to finally take a step forward into realizing her romance, and talks to Yuuki. Through a series of events, she becomes friends with Yuuki and his best friend Kasai. Unfortunately, Sekiya hates Kasai, and Kasai has a crush (that he doesn’t know about) on Sekiya. Yuuki, though not realizing Sekiya’s crush on him, somehow notices Kasai’s crush on Sekiya, and tries to help him get with her. Does it sound stupid yet? Well, after that a girl named Himemiya is introduced, and she has a crush on Kasai. So how does it all turn out? I suppose you’ll have to read to find out. Spoiler alert: it’s a happy ending.

The art is definitely in the shoujo-style, but I like it. Everyone is small and cute and that’s the kind of thing I dig. I especially like Sekiya’s braids since, well, I’m a fan of braids. Like the story, the art is generically shoujo, so if you don’t like that, you’re not going to like this. It even has the patented “shoujo bubbles” that appears during those deep moments. As far as the character designs go (which in this case mean the school uniforms), they’re okay, but definitely not my favorite. Unlike action manga, shoujo manga is generally easy to follow and read in terms of panel placement, so Katakoi Triangle doesn’t have any problems there.

My mistake, they’re not really bubbles. But you can see the random pentagons and other assorted shapes around, right? That’s so shoujo.

I like Katakoi Triangle. I like shoujo. Unfortunately, I don’t think Katakoi Triangle is the best shoujo out there. Not even close. I’ve read a lot of shoujo, and comparatively it’s kind of mediocre. But hey, I have low standards. If you’re in the mood for something short, complete, and kind of cute, and you enjoy shoujo, this might not be a bad idea.